Second Take: Bishop Briggs’ self-titled album bends genres, lacks new content

The first time I heard Bishop Briggs, she was one of the opening acts on Coldplay’s 2016 “Head Full of Dreams” tour. I was immediately taken by her booming voice and rowdy energy and wanted to hear more. Unfortunately, she had released very little music at the time.

Bishop Briggs, a Los Angeles-based musician from Britain whose stage name is based on her parents’ hometown in Scotland, is best known for her single “River.” The singer has also performed at the 2017 South by Southwest festival and was added to the list of Coachella performers even before releasing an album.

But Bishop Briggs finally added to her repertoire with the release of her self-titled album on Friday. Her inaugural album blends rock, hip-hop and soul styles in a genre-bending compilation that revels in its dark lyrical imagery.

But Bishop Briggs’s anticipated first album disappoints in its overall lack of new songs, as many of the tracks have been previously released. Additionally, the album would have benefitted from a more diverse range of topics other than the tortured love that pervades the whole album.

Bishop Briggs’ collection somewhat makes up for for its lack of lyrical variety with its blend of musical styles. While modern music is often neatly parsed into genres and specific labels, Bishop Briggs subverts the divisions and combines musical styles in a genre completely her own.

Bishop Briggs defines herself as a “trap-soul” artist, but her musical influences are actually much more diverse. Her karaoke bar and gospel choir roots created a wide range of musical tastes, from Sinatra to Motown to Led Zeppelin, which appear throughout the album.

Hip-hop-style bass lines are featured prominently on every track, blending with the rock-style guitars and vocals of “River” and “The Fire.” The folksier crooning on “Wild Horses” and the soulful organ on “Way I Do” and “Dead Man’s Arms” meld seamlessly with the bass lines.

While the hip-hop lends a sense of consistency to Bishop Briggs’ musical style, the variety of other stylistic influences are what make her worth listening to; she skillfully blends unexpected genres. Her ability to blend her influences into a cohesive package has become a key tenet of Bishop Briggs’ style.

Bishop Briggs’ lyrics carry an evocatively emotional darkness reminiscent of the emo rock heyday of the mid-2000s, recapturing some of the gleeful teenage angst of bands like My Chemical Romance. Her songs deal mostly with love and heartbreak and craft images of death and devils.

“Oh, I drain your life ’til there’s nothing left but your bloodshot eyes / Oh, I take my time ’til I show you how I feel inside /…I can be your reckless, you can be my stake / I can be your heartache, you can be my shame,” she sings on “Dark Side.” Vampiric lyrics create a quirkily eerie aesthetic and define Bishop Briggs’ image as an artist and performer.

Bishop Briggs’ songs build to energetic refrains, her voice shifting from gentle and soothing on the verses of “Dark Side” to powerfully forceful and roaring on the chorus. The buildup helps the audience follow the emotional narrative of her music.

Where the album falters is in its lack of new songs. Listeners should expect new albums to contain mostly new music from an artist, with a few pre–released singles.

Half of the six songs on Bishop Briggs’ album have already been released as singles – “River,” “Wild Horses” and “Way I Do.” It would have been better for Bishop Briggs to have written more songs and released a longer album. Listeners have probably already heard and grown tired of the songs after hearing them for the past year. Although I would guess her lack of new content is due to her tour and performances at venues like Coachella, Bishop Briggs needs to put out more new music in order to keep her fans interested, and this album was a wasted opportunity to do that.

As a fan of Bishop Briggs’ music, I’m both pleased and disappointed by the album. Although a digital recording of Bishop Briggs’ voice can’t capture her lively stage presence, the recordings do convey her energy. While I am happy that she finally released an album, I wish it had more to offer than three songs I’ve already heard on Spotify a thousand times. The album is likely much more enjoyable for those who are new to Briggs’ music.

“Bishop Briggs” marks the artist’s entrance into the musical landscape with consistently catchy refrains. The album lacks new content and diversity of lyrical themes, but Bishop Briggs’ sonic variety keeps the music entertaining enough and leaves room for the artist to mature in future albums.